INDIANAPOLIS—In a rare set of circumstances, the Miami Heat are prepared to start Game 4 against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, and it is not the usual suspect—Miami forward/lightning rod LeBron James—under the microscope.

No, this time is it guard Dwyane Wade, hobbled by leg injuries and coming off a Game 3 in which he scored just five points and shot 2-for-13 from the field. In case you were wondering whether Wade is putting any pressure on himself, consider that he showed up here two-and-a-half hours early to work on his shooting.

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That did not surprise coach Erik Spoelstra, who has been trying to impress on his team, which is down 2-1 after Thursday night’s 94-75 loss, that one bad game doesn’t have to torpedo a seven-game series.

“The league isn’t easy,” Spoelstra said. “The playoffs aren’t easy. You’re not always going to play your best basketball, but I’ve seen Dwyane so many times over the years, when he has had to bounce back, give his best performances, and he has done that time and time again. In the playoffs, it is about how you manage all the different emotions and staying the course. Obviously, we need him to have an impact today, but it is not only resting on his shoulders.”

One player who could help Wade in this one is big man Udonis Haslem, who has been lost in the shuffle as the Heat have used different lineups to match up with the Pacers in the absence of power forward Chris Bosh. Haslem played just 7:18 in Game 3 and 12:18 in Game 2, and has scored just six points with 12 rebounds in the three games of the conference semifinals.

“It’s been tough trying to figure out this team on the fly now that we have a major component out,” Spoelstra said. “I do know that, none of that is an indictment on UD, but the dynamic of our team has changed.

"We’re losing a big part of our offense, and we’re trying to find out what works best. Being around UD for nine years now, I know his type of competitiveness and toughness can transcend all of those things. So on a day like today, I anticipate he will have an impact on this game.”

Still, the focus from the tip-off will be on Wade and his response to his Game 3 struggle.

“I think he will be very aggressive coming into this game, and obviously, we’ll try to put the ball in his hands to make some plays,” Spoelstra said. “It won’t be exclusively the Dwyane Wade attack. He has a way of getting everybody involved when he has an aggressive mindset and he’s feeling good.”